Publication Date:

Discipline:

Source:

Product number:

Length:

Also Available in:

description

This case describes the sourcing policy for a consumer electronics company. The company must decide how to structure contracts with their supplier - using a purchase contract, an option contract, or combination of the two. The company can also buy from the spot market. The students use a spreadsheet model with Monte Carlo simulation to analyze the contracting options.

learning objective:

This case shows how purchase contracts, option contracts, and spot purchases work in a supply chain setting. The students learn the tradeoffs between these different sourcing contracts.

Publication Date:

Discipline:

Source:

Product number:

Length:

Also Available in:

description

Protagonist leads an apple industry association that hopes to develop a market for New England apple slices to improve demand for apple products. Apples grown for slicing have characteristics that differ from most apples grown in New England. Case allows students to examine whether it makes sense for a farmer to begin to grow apples for slicing. The case also describes the distribution of apples and apple products so that students can examine how a market for sliced apples might get developed and which industry participants might enjoy a position of power in the market.

Publication Date:

Discipline:

Source:

Product number:

Length:

Also Available in:

description

This case describes the waste management industry and a clean technology solution for landfill diversion and renewable energy production. The (A) case focuses on the operational characteristics of waste management and waste to energy, as well as the characteristics of the waste management industry. The intent of the (A) case is to have students perform operational analysis on the organic waste-to-energy process to evaluate whether a potential new plant is economically feasible and attractive. The (B) case focuses on the sourcing dilemma: pre-processing vs. source separation. To ensure that its waste input fuel is of sufficiently high quality (i.e., low level of inorganic contaminants), the company can either build a pre-processing facility to sort incoming waste to filter out contaminants, or work with suppliers to source separate their waste stream.

learning objective:

Illustrate the societal and operational challenges inherent in waste management. Provide framework to students for evaluating possible solutions.

Publication Date:

Discipline:

Source:

Product number:

Length:

Also Available in:

description

This case describes the waste management industry and a clean technology solution for landfill diversion and renewable energy production. The (A) case focuses on the operational characteristics of waste management and waste to energy, and the characteristics of the waste management industry. The intent of the (A) case is to have students perform operational analysis on the organic waste to energy process to evaluate whether a potential new plant is economically feasible and attractive. The (B) case focuses on the sourcing dilemma: pre-processing vs. source separation. To ensure that its waste input fuel is of sufficiently high quality (i.e., low level of inorganic contaminants), the company can either build a pre-processing facility to sort incoming waste to filter out contaminants, or work with suppliers to source separate their waste stream.

learning objective:

Illustrate the societal and operational challenges inherent in waste management. Provide framework to students for evaluating possible solutions.

Publication Date:

Discipline:

Source:

Product number:

Length:

Also Available in:

description

This case explores a method of value creation through exploiting synergies that exist in an environment where there is diversity. The context of the case is a farm where biodiversity is leverage to create value. This is contrasted to industrial farming which operates on the principles of economies of scale. The case also provides an opportunity for students to discuss the environmental impact of different types of operating systems.

learning objective:

Introduce a method of value creation through exploiting synergies between different types of process, that can be beneficial for the environment.

Source:

Product number:

Length:

Also Available in:

description

This case describes how a company improves resource efficiency and process quality in its manufacturing process by developing a waste by-product into a new product. The case describes how CCP cleans production equipment between batches using styrene, which becomes a costly hazardous waste. Having worked on minimizing waste for the past 20 years, CCP believed it could not reduce the use of styrene without risking product quality. Instead, CCP was exploring the development of a by-product from its "rinse styrene," but faces uncertainty regarding the operational, financial, and environmental implications of doing so. This case contains data to support quantitative analyses of financial, operational, and environmental issues including some basic life-cycle analysis (LCA) calculations that focus on greenhouse gas emissions.

learning objective:

This case introduces students to "by-product synergy," a novel approach to process improvement that involves optimizing production, lowering costs, and reducing waste by recognizing opportunities to convert waste by-products into salable products.

Product number:

Length:

Also Available in:

description

Herman Miller, an office furniture supplier, decided to implement the cradle-to-cradle (C2C) design protocol during the design of its mid-level office chair, Mirra. The C2C protocol was a set of environmentally friendly product development guidelines created by architect William McDonough and chemist Michael Braungart. The essence of this protocol was to eliminate waste and potentially harmful materials by designing the product so that, at the end of its useful life, the raw materials could be fed back into either a technical or biological cycle and used for the same or other purposes. Therefore, materials remained in a closed-loop, eliminating the need for landfill and other toxic forms of disposal such as incineration. The case describes the C2C protocol, the details of how Herman Miller implemented C2C during the design of the Mirra chair, as well as the impact of the new protocol on their internal processes: design decisions, manufacturing, and supply chain management. The proximate decision point in the case is whether the company should replace the polyvinyl chloride (PVC) material in the arm pads of the Mirra chair. PVC was a highly toxic material to manufacture and dispose of and thus violated the C2C protocol. However, it was the standard material for arm pads and many other parts in the office furniture industry as it was durable, scratch resistant, and inexpensive. To switch to thermoplastic urethane (TPU), a more environmentally friendly material, for the Mirra Chair arm pad required at least modification of a production tool, or possibly a completely new tool. In addition, the cost of TPU was higher than PVC. There was also uncertainty about how consistent the quality of the arm pad would be with TPU.

learning objective:

To show that by scrutinizing processes through an environmental lens, Herman Miller can also improve performance.

*required field. You can change details at any time before activation.

The enrollment number will not limit students' access to materials. Accurate enrollment allows
us to manage site traffic and course activity.

If your course is affiliated with an institution not listed here or you need to create a course to last longer than 6 months,
please contact HBP Customer Service at custserv@hbsp.harvard.edu or 800-545-7685.

Type the information in each box. Boxes marked with an asterisk (*) are required information.
You can change the coursepack information, including the Start and Stop Dates and the quantity,
at any time before you activate the coursepack.

If your coursepack is affiliated with an institution not listed here or you need to create a coursepack
which is longer than 6 months, please contact HBP Customer Service at custserv@hbsp.harvard.edu
or 800-545-7685.